The recently agreed and comprehensive changes to the Champions League from the 2024/25 season and the plans for a so-called Super League – in recent days there has been a heated debate in European football. While the European elite league is on the verge of collapse, the reform of the Champions League has been agreed by UEFA.
On Thursday evening, Fernando Carro, chairman of the board at Bayer 04, talks at length about these issues. The 56-year-old can also call on his experience as a member of the UEFA Club Competitions Committee. Carro is being interviewed on RTL Nitro from 20.15 CEST. The free TV channel is broadcasting the Europa League semi-final between Manchester United and AS Roma (kick-off: 21.00 CEST) and the interview with the Bayer 04 CEO will be shown in the build-up to the game.
Head coach Hannes Wolf is also a representative of the Black and Reds on TV on Friday night, 30 April. The 40-year-old is a guest of host Alexander Bommes on the Sportschau Club on ARD. The live broadcast begins immediately following the DFB Cup semi-final between Werder Bremen and RB Leipzig (kick-off: 20.30 CEST).
Things could hardly be any better for midfield dynamo Exequiel Palacios at the moment. Since Bayer 04 head coach Hannes Wolf took over the helm ahead of matchday 27, the Argentinian has been an established part of the Black and Red midfield. The 22-year-old has been in the starting eleven in the last five games and he went the full distance in four of those matches.
Why 'Pala' feels such great confidence from the head coach was explained recently in an interview with selected members of the press: "Hannes and I had a very good conversation. He said I should show why I am an established member of the Argentina team. Fortunately that worked out."
After his lumbar vertebral fracture, which he suffered in the middle of November with Argentina in a World Cup qualifier, Palacios has recently grown into the role of enforcer in front of the defence. "The tactical system suits me. The job of closing down space is something I like. I feel very happy with it," said our number 25.
Like Palacios, Kerem Demirbay has also played in every game to date under Hannes Wolf. The 27 year-old was a starter in three of the five games. Recently he scored the crucial goal to make it 3-1 in the home game against Eintracht Frankfurt. His deflected shot from 25 yards out was probably the most unlikely goal on Bundesliga matchday 31 – with a goal probability of just three per cent.
Dimitar Berbatov originally wanted to take up a new post in his home country in June. The plan of the former Werkself player (2001 to 2006): To win the new election for the president of the Bulgarian Football Association. However, 'Berbo's' candidacy has received a setback.
Borislav Mihajlov, who resigned two years ago due to racist incidents, recently announced his return to his post. He also declared that elections will be held in 2022. So Berbatov will probably have to be patient for a few months before he can launch his election campaign...
Domagoj Vida celebrated his 32nd birthday on Thursday in Bulgaria's neighbouring country. The central defender played for the Werkself in 2010/11 and today he plays for Besiktas in the Turkish capital – and as a regular first choice with the club he is on the way to winning the league title. Bayer 04 wish him continuing success in the league and many happy returns.
In their third friendly of this pre-season, Bayer 04 played on home soil for the first time – and won there too! The Werkself claimed a comfortable 4-0 victory against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion. Jeanuel Belocian (9’) and Nathan Tella (42’) gave a dominant Leverkusen a 2-0 lead at the break, which Afonso Moreira (51’) and Christian Kofane (53’) doubled after the break. Among the many second-half substitutions was Patrik Schick, who made his first friendly appearance of the summer.
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The Werkself are finally back. On Saturday 8 August, Bayer 04 kick off the 2026/27 campaign with their opening match. But there’s far more than just a double-header in store for Werkself supporters. True to the motto ‘One day. Two teams. One club’, the BayArena and the Ulrich Haberland Stadium will be transformed into a world of excitement.
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The Werkself continue their 2026/27 pre-season preparations with their third friendly against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion on Wednesday 29 July (kick-off 15:00 CEST). Werkself-TV is broadcasting the match live and in full in a stream from 14:50 CEST...
After the children from the Bayer 04 Football Academy grilled Janis Blaswich and Simeon Rapsch last week, another group of 20 young Werkself fans gathered at the BayArena press conference room on Tuesday afternoon, 28 July . This time, the kids directed their questions at Tim Oermann and Jonah Berghoff. Defender Oermann raved about his school days, whilst talented midfielder Berghoff revealed to the young footballers, amongst other things, who his favourite player is – and he is also at Bayer 04. To round things off, the pair naturally obliged with all requests for autographs and selfies.
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Bayer 04 are back on the pitch. Following the first training sessions, the Werkself play the first pre-season friendly on Saturday, July 18. The match against Oberliga club Sportfreunde Baumberg kicks off at 15:30 CEST in Monheim am Rhein. Fans unable to attend the match can watch head coach Carles Martínez’s first game in charge for free via a livestream at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app, as well as on Werkself.tv (exclusively for members). Just log on and watch the games live. All the other Werkself preseason friendlies leading up to the 2026/27 season will also be streamed live for free.
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